Indiana State Sycamores vs Murray State Racers Prediction, 1/17/2026 College Basketball Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: Indiana State Sycamores vs Murray State Racers

Date: Saturday, January 17, 2026

Location: CFSB Center in Murray, KY

TV: ESPN+

The Indiana State Sycamores (9-9) are hitting the road to CFSB Center on Saturday where they will meet the Murray State Racers (15-3).

The Indiana State Sycamores took the court against Illinois State and notched a win by a score of 94-89 in their last game. Indiana State wrapped up the game having earned a 56.1% field goal percentage (32 of 57) and made 8 of their 24 three-point attempts. When they shot from the free throw line, the Sycamores converted 22 of 30 tries for a rate of 73.3%. When it comes to pulling down boards, they compiled 25 with 5 of them being of the offensive sort. They also distributed 26 assists for this contest in addition to forcing the opposition into 8 turnovers and earning 4 steals. In terms of defense, Indiana State let their opponent shoot 55.4% from the field on 31 of 56 shooting. Illinois State dished out 10 assists and had 4 steals in this contest. On top of that, Illinois State grabbed 26 rebounds (6 offensive, 20 defensive), but wasn't able to record a rejection. Illinois State finished the contest at 75.0% at the free throw line by burying 18 of their 24 tries. They converted 9 of 21 tries from three-point range. Regarding personal fouls, the Sycamores finished with 19 and Illinois State finished the game with 22 personal fouls.

Ian Scott is a player who was a factor in the matchup. He finished 68.8% from the floor and dished out 3 assists. He played for 38 minutes and grabbed 11 rebounds. He left the arena with 24 points on 11 of 16 shooting.

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Indiana State enters this one with a record of 9-9 this season. They have an average of 76.4 points per outing (200th in the nation) on 46.0% from the floor. The Sycamores are shooting 30.5% from downtown (152 of 498) and 70.7% from the charity stripe. As a team, Indiana State is snagging 35.8 boards per game and has 320 assists for the campaign, which is 21st in college in terms of passing the ball. They lose possession by turning the ball over 12.8 times per game and as a unit they are committing 15.3 personal fouls per contest.

Defensively, the Sycamores are forcing 11.6 turnovers per game and they draw 16.0 personal fouls. They are giving up 32.2% from beyond the arc while they are 213th in D-1 in opponents points per game (74.6). The Sycamores defensively are allowing a FG percentage of 44.8% (513 of 1,146) and they concede 36.6 rebounds per game as a team. They are 109th in D-1 in giving up assists to the opposition with 216 surrendered on the year.

When they last stepped on the court, the Murray State Racers got the victory with a final of 92-79 when they faced Valparaiso. With respect to how they cleaned up the glass, Murray State permitted Valparaiso to get 31 in total (8 on the offensive side). They finished shooting 43.8% from beyond the perimeter by going 7 out of 16 and finished the game at 18 of 22 at the free throw line (81.8%). The Racers permitted Valparaiso to bury 27 of 58 attempts from the floor which gave them a rate of 46.6% in this contest. Overall, the Racers walked away from this one shooting 31 out of 65 from the field which gave them a rate of 47.7%. With regard to shooting from beyond the arc, Murray State made 12 out of 31 tries (38.7%). They were able to knock down 18 of the free throw attempts for a percentage of 78.3%. Valparaiso had 21 personal fouls for the contest which took the Racers to the charity stripe for a total of 23 attempts. They also turned the ball over 11 times, while earning 10 steals for the game. The Racers earned 23 defensive rebounds and 9 offensive rebounds totaling 32 in the matchup.

Javon Jackson ended up being a major contributor for the Racers in the game. He totaled 21 points in his 24 minutes on the court and earned 5 assists in this game. He converted 6 of 12 for the matchup giving him a field goal percentage of 50.0%, and had 1 rebound.

Murray State has a win-loss record of 15-3 for the campaign. The Racers are committing 18.6 personal fouls per game and they shoot 76.4% from the charity stripe. They are dishing out assists 15.7 times per contest (99th in Division 1) and they are turning it over 12.2 times per game. Murray State has accounted for 1,583 pts for the campaign (87.9 per game) and they pull in 38.3 rebounds per contest. When it comes to executing on offense, the Racers are shooting 47.8% from the field, which ranks 67th in college hoops.

The Racers on the defensive end are ranked 275th in Division 1 in points allowed per contest with 77.1. They are forcing 12.2 turnovers on a nightly basis and have let teams shoot 44.6% from the field (241st in college hoops). The Murray State defense surrenders 32.6% on shots from 3-point land (91 of 279) and their opponents are making 74.5% of their shots from the free throw line. They have relinquished 11.7 dimes and 34.9 boards per game, which is 54th and 214th in the nation.

Who will win tonight's NCAA game against the spread?

Guy Bruhn's Pick: Take Indiana State

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